


The Choices We Make, The Lives We Lead

by hailqiqi



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Drinking, F/M, First Date, Homesickness, Kinda, Light Angst, Loneliness, Reunion, Salsa dancing, Sunrises, Team Reunion, because voltron sunrises are romantic, ish, just time apart and not-officially-together, mentions of past relationship, no break-ups, of course there's a happy ending I wrote it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-02
Updated: 2017-11-02
Packaged: 2019-01-28 15:47:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12610068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hailqiqi/pseuds/hailqiqi
Summary: After almost half a decade stuck in space they’d finally had the option to go home. Visit. Stay, even. Build lives for themselves.Lance hadn't realised how lonely it was to be alone in his head until it was too late.





	The Choices We Make, The Lives We Lead

**Author's Note:**

> Based off a tumblr prompt: "Choose me"

“LANCE!!”

He’d barely taken two steps forward when Pidge barrelled into him. Her arms squeezed him tightly as she buried her face in his chest, flyaway honey-brown hair all over the place, and time stood still for a heartbeat.

Her hair still smelled the same.

Then the moment was gone and he was swamped, swept off his feet and into Hunk’s big arms, tugged on and squeezed and ruffled and kissed by Shiro, Allura, Keith and Coran, and he felt tears sting his eyes and escape down his cheeks because they were finally, finally back together.

He’d _missed_ them.

—

Later on, sitting on the floor of Blue’s hanger, Lance found himself wishing that the Castle could stay on Earth forever.

After almost half a decade stuck in space they’d finally had the option to go home. Visit. Stay, even. Build lives for themselves.

Shiro had declined, saying that there was still work to be done in the universe, and Keith had said there wasn’t anything for him back on Earth. Lance hadn’t been expecting any different from them.

Hunk’s decision to stay on with Voltron had surprised him, but not much. Hunk missed home, but he felt like the rest of the universe really needed him and he had to do what he could to help.

Then Pidge had confessed that she was staying on too, terrified of waking up screaming about memories in the closet if she returned home for good. She was worried that normal life might make the nightmares worse.

Lance had wanted to stay on too, but the moment he saw his mother again he knew he had to go home. He’d put her through enough already. His family needed him, and by God he needed them too. Not a single day had gone by when he hadn’t thought of them.

And then the bitter irony was that not a single day went by when he didn’t think of his family up in space.

He hadn’t realised how lonely it was to be alone in his head until the Castle had left the solar system and the bonds had faded into distant pinpricks of starlight. The shocking intrusion when they’d roared back to life that morning had made him feel whole.

But they were only going to be here for a week, and then he was going to be alone again.

“Didn’t think I’d find you moping on the first night of our visit.”

Lance jumped in surprise, spinning around to find Pidge leaning against the wall near the door, arms crossed over her chest. Her hair fell to just below her shoulders, and she was wearing an off-the-shoulder emerald-green top, three-quarter black pants and a rueful smile.

He couldn’t stop his eyes from roving over her, taking her in. Had she always been this beautiful? Probably, but she’d definitely gotten even prettier while they’d been gone. Or while he’d been gone.

Who was it that left who?

“Uh, Castle-Ship to Lance? You in there man?”

Lance started, then shook his head. “Yeah, sorry. I just…” He gestured absently at the space around him. “…Yeah.”

She smiled, then wandered over to sit beside him. “Blue missed you, you know. Allura would always complain about it.”

“Both of them have been telling me all about it,” he replied, laughing.

Pidge smiled again, and they fell into an easy silence, gazing up at the Blue Lion. There was just enough distance between them that they weren’t touching, but Lance suddenly felt far too hot anyway. Had it always been like this? He couldn’t remember.

“I missed you too,” Pidge said quietly, bumping his shoulder with hers. He turned to face her, his hand moving automatically to tuck a stray strand of her hair behind her ear. She smiled warmly as he rubbed his thumb along her cheekbone, marvelling at the softness of her skin, and then she was leaning towards him and resting her head on his shoulder and the world felt a little more right than it did before.

 A moment later, Pidge spoke again.

“So… I remember something about you taking me salsa dancing one day?”

Lance pulled back to look down at her with wide eyes. “Are you serious?”

Pidge grinned up at him. “Well, neither of us can sleep, and we’re in Cuba, and you have a car, so…” She shrugged, feigning innocence. “Why not?”

Lance threw his head back with a laugh, then met her gaze with a smirk.

“Do you have a dress?”

 

—

 

Two hours later and they were giggling together on a crowded dance floor in Matanzas, faces flushed with exertion. They came together, stepped away, around, and back, and maybe it was just the atmosphere in the club but Lance felt electrified.

He sent her into a twirl and caught her against his chest on the return, and when she grinned up at him Lance felt his breath catch in his throat. Then she pushed away from his torso, straightening up and declaring a need for water before dragging him through the throng of customers towards the bar.

They’d played at this before. Stolen kisses, tentative touches, even furtive nights spent pressed together as they worked off the adrenaline from whatever near-death experience they’d had that day. He’d liked her and she’d liked him - of that he was sure - but they’d never really talked about it, and Pidge had avoided most of his efforts to do so. Lance had never figured out what she was so afraid of, but he hadn’t seen the point in pressing the issue at the time.

Now he found himself wishing that he had. His mom would’ve understood better if there was a girlfriend he was staying for.

Pidge tapped his arm, breaking him out of his thoughts. “Hey! You have to pay the guy!”

Lance groaned as he dug his wallet out of his pocket. “I thought _you_ asked _me_ out?”

“Yeah, but I don’t have any money,” Pidge shrugs apologetically as she hands him a cold bottle of water. “Besides, I thought you said guys always pay on first dates?”

Lance looked at her sharply, hope blossoming in his chest. “Is this a date?”

“I’m wearing a dress and heels, Lance. It had better be a date.”

“Well then,” he said, taking a swig of water and offering her a smile, “Looks like this is definitely a date.”

 

—

 

Another few hours saw them sitting on the hood of his car, watching the sun begin to rise over the Caribbean at Varadero.

After the club they’d wandered the streets, soaking in some of the old town at night, and then Lance had decided he should show her his favourite place on Earth and drove them over to the resort town.

It was past 3 a.m. when they arrived and everything was long shut, but that hadn’t felt like a problem. Just being there together felt like more than enough.

And after twelve months apart, there was plenty to talk about.

She’d laughed and complained that she still couldn’t drive, he’d asked about her family (Matt was heading back up with Voltron this time, but her dad was staying on Earth with her mom), she’d asked about his (everyone was doing fine and he had a new niece). She’d told him more about the year they’d been apart - more about the little daily things that she knew he missed the most, rather than the meetings and battles that the others had filled him in on earlier - and he’d talked about his new life on Earth, how he was still trying to figure out what he was going to do with his life now that he was 22 with no qualifications.

They’d gone over options - he had a decent amount of money from royalties and Pidge had insisted on splitting her trust fund with the whole group, so the choices ranged from ‘Go back to the Garrison’ to ‘Buy a yacht and sail around the world selling ice cream’ - and now the conversation had petered out, leaving them tired but happy as they watched the sun slowly peek over the horizon.

Lance knew the sight was breathtaking but instead he was watching Pidge, smiling at the way her face lit up and her mouth dropped open in a small ‘oh’. She was entranced, and he found it entrancing.

“I thought a million sunrises just ‘happen’ all over the galaxy,” he teased, poking her in the side with a finger.

She squirmed and turned to face him, laughing. “Yeah, but this one’s different. It’s your sunrise.” A blush bloomed across her cheeks as she spoke, painting them a charming pink that made his heart beat faster.

Lance grinned, poking her again for emphasis. “Who knew Katie Holt could be romantic?”

Pidge batted at his hand, laughing, then fell silent as he caught her hand in his and held it firmly.

“Pidge…” He started, heart pounding.

“Lance…” She replied, eyes fixed on their joined hands. Then she swung her gaze up to his, determined and fierce, and Lance was suddenly reminded of why he fell in love with her in the first place.

“We’re going to leave in a week. We probably won’t see you again for another year, or longer.”

Lance closed his eyes, his heart already aching at the thought. “I know.”

“Can I ask something selfish?”

He nodded, surprised.

“This time, when we leave…” She paused, glancing down and taking a deep breath before meeting his gaze again. “Choose me. Please.”

Lance let go of her hand and cupped her face, trailing his fingers around to the back of her neck to tug her slowly towards him as he leaned down. A brief meeting of lips - their first kiss in _over a year_ , he reminded himself - and then he rested his forehead against hers, closing his eyes and revelling in how close she was.

He wanted to stay with her.

He loved his family, but they had their own busy, adult lives. The only adult life he knew was the one he’d shared with Pidge.

He should probably think about it more, but he already knew the answer. He’d known it since the moment the Castle left twelve months ago.

“Okay,” he whispered. “Okay.”


End file.
